Garment folding apparatus



June 2, 1942; J. w. S TEELE 2,285,063

' GARMENT FOLDING APPARATUS Filed Spt. 7, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I lNVENT OR J. W Stae/e;

4 ATTORNEY.

J. w. sTEELE GARMENT FOLDING APPARATUS June 2,1942.

Filed Sept. 7, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR J. W .S'zee/e ATTORNEY Patented June 2, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE' GARMENT FOLDING APPARATUS James W. Steele, North Kansas City, Mo. Application September I, 1940, Serial No. 355,751

17 Claims.

The present invention relates to apparatus designed for use in laundries or cleaning establishments, and garment factories, and similar plants, with particular reference to apparatus'used in connection with, the operations of finishing and folding the garments, such as shirts and similar garments.

The improvements have direct relation to apparatus in which, following the operation of folding the garments into the usual conventional form, a band is applied to the folded garment as a final step of the process.

Accordingly, a prime feature of the invention is the provision of means for facilitating the separation of these bands, as they are needed in the carrying out of this process, so as not to slow down the work of the operator due to any difliculty in separating and obtaining single bands from the stack or supply.

For this purpose the invention provides means under the control of the operator for applying a certain creasing or bending pressure to the end portions of the bands, in connection with which a sliding or drawing action is also produced for helping to effect a spreading and separation of the ends of the bands; and furthermore, provision is also made for fanning out the end portions of the bands, and in an upwardly projecting position, whereby a most efiective spreading and separating action is produced for facilitating the work of the operator in obtaining individual bands as needed for application to the shirts in the successive shirt-banding operations.

A further object of the invention is to provide suitable means adapted to be automatically actuated by the aforesaid operations for counting the same and thereby keeping an accurate record of the output of the apparatus.

A further object is to provide apparatus of the above-described character which includes a movable garment fold-board adapted to be actuated automatically into its inoperative position simultaneously with the operation of the aforesaid band-creasing mechanism. In this connection also it is sought to provide a garment fold-board construction having means for automatically latching the folding elements thereof together with suitable provision for automatically releasing said latching means on return of the foldboard to its inoperative position.

Having the foregoing general objects in view,

as well as other minor objects as will appear in the course of the following detail specification, the present invention will now be described in more detail by reference to the accompanying drawings illustrating apparatus suitably embodying the proposed improvements, following which those features and combinations which are deemed to be novel as well as patentable will be particularly set forth and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a plan view showing an apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same;

Figure 3 is a front elevation;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view, on a larger scale, and representing a section taken on the line l4 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a similar sectional view, but showing certain of the parts in different positions of operation;

Figure 6 is a transverse sectional view, representing a section taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a similar but fragmentary sectional view, on a plane indicated by the section line of Figure 5, illustrating the action of creasing the shirt-bands;

Figure 8 is an enlarged detail sectional view,

on a plane indicated by the section line 8-8 of Figure 1;

Figure 9 is a sectional detail, on an enlarged scale, showing the latching means for the arms of the fold-board, and representing a section taken on the line 99 of Figure 6; Figure 10 is a detail sectional view taken on line Ill-I0 of Figure 5; and

Figure 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the band-creasing arm.

The present application relates to improvements in the type of apparatus illustrated in my prior Patent No. 2,010,333 dated August 6, 1935, and also in my pending application Ser. 334,539 filed May 11, 1940.

In the type of apparatus forming the subjectmatter of the aforesaid patent and application, provision is made for the use of shirt wrapping bands which are applied to the shirts after they are completely folded, a supply of the bands being accommodated by the apparatus in convenient position for instant use and application to the shirts at the end of the folding operation.

Some degree of difliculty was experienced in readily separating and detaching from the supply or stack of wrapping bands a single one of the bands as required for each successive operation, since the bands were often inclined to stick together, and of course any delay in separating them thus slowed down the work of the operator.

It is accordingly the purpose of the present invention to remedy this difllculty, and it being also desirable in some cases to provide suitable counting means for registering the output of each machine or apparatus, I have also made such provision as is necessary for this purpose by means of a counter which is automatically actuated by a simple operative relation to one of the elements of the improvement as regards the band separating means.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the improved apparatus comprises a pedestal member H for supporting a table l2, which is provided with a transverse recess or channel for the placing of a supply of the 'shirt wrapping bands IS in convenient position for the operator to grasp both ends of a band for wrapping it about the finished shirt or other garment, as described in my aforesaid patent and pending application.

Longitudinally upon the top face of said table l2 are secured pairs of guide strips or cleats l8 spaced apart the width of the folded shirt, the inner faces of said strips being inclined as indicated at [9. These strips are provided in alined sections separated at the cross-recess or channel I5, to permit the application of the bands l6 in the band-applying operation. Along the middle of the working face of the table is provided a longitudinal recess 2| which may, if desired, be lined with a suitable plastic filler 22, At the rear of the table is provided a collar recess 24 having a collar block member 26 and also a collar-engaging structure comprising an inclined lug 28 and side ledges 30.

At the rear of the collar recess 24 is mounted a plate or panel member 32 hinged at 33 and provided with a pair of swinging or folding arms 34 and 34' pivoted to said plate 32 at 35, the width of the plate 32 being somewhat less than the space between the strips or cleats l8, as shown in Figure 6. These arms 34 and 34' are actuated by spri gs 36 normally into outwardly extended relation as represented by broken lines in Figure 6, and are adapted to fold over each other into operative position as represented in Figures 3 and 6, in which relation they are retained or latched by means of automatically acting latching and releasing means.

The foregoing details are in the main similar to the construction described in my aforesaid pending application, excepting with reference to said automatically acting latching and releasing means, which in the present case comprises a sliding latch member 40 mounted in a keeper 4| carried by said plate or panel 32-see Figure 9. One end of the latch member is formed with a hooked finger 42 for retaining engagement with the arm 34 when the latter is folded into oper ative position as shown in Figure 6, while the opp site end of the latch member 40 projects far enough to engage the top of the table l2 for latch-releasing purposes, as represented in Figure 5. The latch member is held normally in arm-latching position by means of a coil spring 44 inside the keeper 4! and engaging a shoulder 45 on the latch member, said spring 44 obviously being compressed by pressure of the latch against the top of the table for sliding its finger portion 42 out of engagement with said arm 34, when the plate or panel is swung into its upright or rear position as represented in Figure 5.

Now referring to the means for creasing and spreading the ends of the bands l6 which are stacked in the transverse channel or recess l5, there is mounted on the table opposite each end of said recess a channel piece secured by screws 5| to the-table and containing a suitable block 52 or elastic composition such as rubber.

. oted at 51 in the free end portion of the arm,

the latter being also slotted as indicated at 58 to allow rocking of said plate 56 on' its pivot 51, as represented in Figure 5. Each of the gears 55 is journaled at 60 in bearing brackets 6| carried by a plate 62 mounted for limited sliding movement between guide pieces 63 fas tened by screws 64 to the table, said screws also serving to secure a channel member 65 for housing the gear and arm 54, for which latter a slot 66 is provided in the top of the channel 65.

The gears 55 are engaged by rack bars 10 which are slidingly mounted in channel pieces H secured by screws 12 to the under face of the table i2 (see Figures 4 and 5). The forward ends of the rack bars 10 are pivotally connected, at T3, to adjustable links 14 which are pivoted at 15 to crank arms 16 at the opposite ends of a rock shaft 18 journaledin bearing 7 blocks 19 attached by screws to the under face of the table l2. Near one end of the shaft 18 is provided another crank arm 02 having an operating link connection 83 to a treadle member 84 fulcrumed at 85 near the base of the pedestal II. This member 8.4 carries a tread plate 85 at the front of the apparatus, and the link connection 63 includes a turnbuckle element 81 for adjusting purposes.

One end of the rock shaft 18 is fitted with a coil spring 00 (see Figure 3) so arranged as to rock the shaft normally in a direction to raise the treadle and advance the rack bars 10 into forward position as shown in Figure 4, in which position the band-creasing arms'54 are rocked backward into inoperative position.

The rock shaft 18 is also provided with a crank arm 92 which is connected by a link 84 with a crank arm 95 secured to a rock shaft 96 mounted in brackets 91 on the top of the table i2'just below the hinge 33 of the plate or panel member 32. The shaft 96 is also provided with a curved arm 98 projecting in position for lifting engagement with said plate member 32 in response to the operation of the treadle through the described connections, and as illustrated in Figure 5. The crank arm 95 is provided with a series of openings 99 for adjustable connection with the end of the operating link 94 (see Figures 4 and 5).

It being desirable in some cases to make provision for counting the operations of the machine and hence afford a convenient and accurate record of its output for a given period, a conventional form of counter device I00 may be mounted on the top of table l2 in position for actuation by a pin or plunger l0l slidingly mounted in a fixed bracket I02 and projecting rearwardly through an opening in the rear end of one of the channel casings 65-all as illustrated in Figure 5. The rear end of the corresponding plate 62 is formed with a vertical abutment I 04 engaging the head terposed between said abutment and the bracket I02, inside each of said channel casings ll, for maintaining the plates 52 normally in their advanced or forward positions while permitting rearward movement of the Plates for the carrying out of the double function as regards both the band-creasing operation and also the counting operation, as hereinafter explained.

As convenient accessories to the apparatus, a holder in is provided for the'collar supports used in the finishing operation, and also a. holder IIO for the supply of shirt-stiffening boards, in handy position for the operator to use' as described in the aforesaid pending application. As shown by the drawings, the holder Ill may be provided with an extension I I I for attachment by suitable fastenings I I2 to the holder I II for securing said holders in side by side relation (see Figure 8), and a bracket 4 is provided for the lower end of the holder I III for securing the latter by screws I I5 to the table l2.

Theprincipal steps followed in the use of the apparatus in the shirt finishing and folding process are outlined in my said pending application Ser. 334,539, to which reference may be made for a fuller statement regarding the details of said operation both before and after the lowering of the plate or panel member 32 comprising the fold-board part of the apparatus. It will suflice to point out briefly that the first .part of the operation takes place with the shirt laid face down on the table with its collar or neckband portion in the recess 24, and the operator proceeds to straighten out the rest of the garment in proper position on the table ready for folding, a supply of the shirt wrapping bands l6 having been placed in the transverse channel or recess 15, as illustrated in Figure 6. I

During this first part of the operation, the operating parts have occupied the relative positions illustrated in Figures 1 to 4, the treadle 84 and the panel or foldboard 32 both being in raised position.

The operator next lowers the fold-board or panel 32 down upon the shirt, the arms 34 and 34' flying out into the positions shown by dotted lines in Figure 6 for the carrying out of the shirtfolding operation as described in the aforesaid patent and pending application, during which part of the operation the said arms are automatically latched by engagement of the arm 34 with the latch element 42. p

The operator now operates the treadle 84 which slides the rackbarslil rearwardly as illustrated in Figure 5, thereby rotating the gears 55 and swinging the arms 54 forward to engage the plates 56 with the end portions of the bands I6. At the same time the link 94 operates the lever 95 and arm 98 to lift the fold-board or panel 32 carrying the folded shirt and throw said panel back into original raised position as represented by the successive positions shown in Figure 5. on reaching said original raised position, the end 40 of the latch bar is actuated by engagement with the top of the table to release the latch finger 42 from the arm 34, so that the arms 34 and 34' are once again free to swing outwardly during the next operation of bringing said foldboard or panel 32 forward, on to the table, just prior to which of course the folded and banded shirt is removed from the fold-board, as an incident between successive operations.

It has been mentioned that the plates 62 carrying the gears 55 are mounted to slide, for canying out a double function. The first of'these functions is to accentuate the creasing action upon the bands l5 while also imparting a trans verse spreading action thereto; and the second is to provide means for actuating the counter device by the necessarymovement of the projecting end of the pin of plunger NH.

The backward sliding movement of the rackbars II is accompanied by rotation of .the gears 55 until the creasing plates 56 engage the bands i5 and apply a creasing pressure thereto until the limit of pressure is reached and rotation of the gears is finally stopped; continued movement of the rackbars then produces sliding movement of the plates 62 and corresponding sliding of the plates 56 upon the ends of the stack of bands. combined with pressure as transmitted through the connections from the treadle and tending to further rotate the gears'55 in opposition to the resistance offered by the bands and their resilient supporting blocks 5|. Such combined pressure and simultaneous drawing of the creasing plates 56 across the end portions of the bands obviously produces an effective creasing operation; and with the outer walls of the channels 50 projecting higher than their inner walls, the net result is to somewhat elevate the outer ends of the bands and at the same time impart not only a transverse spreading movement thereto as indicated in Figure 5, but also a still further spreading or fanning action-to the ends of the bands as clearly illustrated in Figure 7, thereby presenting the ends of the bands in the position most convenient to the operator in grasping a single band for each successive operation of the apparatus.

Moreover, it is obvious that this sliding movement of the plate 62 which is illustrated in Figures 4 and 5 as associated with the plunger de- Vice IN, finally results in the necessary action for operating the counter 100, as has already been explained.

When the operator releases the treadle it will be understood of course that the parts controlled by the operation of the treadle are simply returned automatically to their original position, as illustrated in Figures 2 and 4.

It will therefore be apparent from the foregoing that I have devised a practical and efiicient improved construction of apparatus for the carrying out of the aforesaid objects of the invention, including the necessary treatment or action upon the ends of the shirt-wrapping bands for insuring the ability of the operator to select single bands for the successive shirt-wrapping operations, as well as the counting or registering of said successive operations, and also the automatic return of the shirt fold-board to inoperative position simultaneously with the performance of said band-creasing'and spreading operations, and that the improvements thus provided are most effective for the purposes in view. It is to be understood, however, that the construction herein shown and described for such purposes is merely illustrative, and is nevertheless susceptible of various changes while still adhering to the essential principles of my invention. I therefore desire to be understood as reserving the right and privilege of making all such changes or modifications as may fairly be deemed to fall within the spirit and scope of my invention as defined by the following claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. Apparatus of the character described, comin the final finishing and folding operations,

means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands in position to be applied to the finished and folded garment, and creasing devices permanently mounted on said table adjacent to the opposite ends of the band supply and operative simultaneously to" spread and facilitate separa tion of the bands between the successive operations of the apparatus.

3. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations, means for accommodating a stack of bands in transverse position underneath the table surface in position for successive use in application to the finished garments, and duplicate means operative simultaneously at the will of the operator for engaging said creasing elements with the opposite end portions of the bands, and means controlled by the operator for slidingly actuating said members to producea sliding pressure action of said cre'asingelements to crease the bands between successive operations of the apparatus.

8. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table, for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations, means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands ready for application to the finished and folded garment, creasing members movable into and out of operative position to engage the end portions of the bands, and means operable at the will of the operator to move said members into engagement with the bands and thereafter produce sliding movement of the members while in said operative engagement for spreading said end portions between successive operations of the apparatus.

9. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations,

for creasing and spreading the opposite end portions of the bands between successive operations of the apparatus.

4. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations, means'for accommodating a stack of bands underneath the garment upon the table and in position for application thereto in wrapping the garment, and duplicate means operative simultaneously at the will of the operator for applying a sliding creasing pressure action to the end portions of the bands to spread and fan out said end portions into upwardly projecting position, between successive operations of the apparatus.

5. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations, means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands for application to the finished and folded garment, and duplicate slidable band-creasing devices having a common actuating means operable at the will of the operator for simultaneously applyin a sliding creasing pressure to the end portions of the bands to spread said end v portions between successive operations of the apparatus. I

6. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding opera tions, means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands in position-for application to the finished and folded garment, arms carrying pivoted creasing plates and movable into and out of position for engaging said plates with the end portions of the bands, and means under the control of the operator for actuating said arms to crease the opposite end portions of said bands between successive operations of the apparatus.

7. Apparatus'of tthe character described comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations thereon, means for presenting a supply of wrapping bands in position to be applied to the finished and folded garments, members carrying creasing elements and movable into and out of position means for presenting a supply of wrapping bands w in position for application to the finished and folded garments, means for creasing and spreading the ends of the bands between successive operations of the apparatus, said means including channels having side walls of different height and extending transversely of the bands for fanning out the end portions thereof into upwardly projecting position.

10. Apparatus of the character described comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations thereon, means for presenting a supply of wrapping bands in position for application to the finished and folded garments, gears carrying band-creasing elements, and rackbars operable at the will of the operator to rotate said gears and thereby actuate said band-creasing elements into operative creasing engagement with the end portions of said wrapping bands.

11. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a tablefor accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations, means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands in position for application to the finished and folded garments, gears carrying band-creasing elements and having slidable mountings, and rackbars operable at the will of the operator to actuate said gears to both rotate and bodily move the same and thereby produce a sliding pressure action of said creasing elements for creasing and spreading the ends of the wrapping bands between successive operations of said apparatus.

12. Apparatus of the character described comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations thereon, means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands in position ready for application to the finished and folded garments, gears carrying band-creasing elements and adapted for both rotary and bodily movement, rackbars operative to produce both rotary and bodily movement of the gears to effect a sliding pressure action of said creasing elements upon the ends of the bands between successive operations of the apparatus, and a counter device actuated by said bodily movement of one of said gears for registering said successive operations of the apparatus.

13. Apparatus of the character described comprising a table, a panel member movable into and ried by the opposite sides of said panel member, and means for latching said folding elements in their inwardly folded relation, and including means adapted to automatically release said latching means when said panel member is thrown upward and backward into inoperative position.

14. Apparatus of the character described comprising a table, a panel member movable into and out of superposed relation to the top of the table, spring-actuated garment folding elements carried by the opposite sides of said panel member, and means adapted to automatically latch said folding elements in their inwardly folded relation, said means including a projecting part adapted to be actuated by engagement with the top of the table on movement of said panel member into inoperative position and thereby automatically release said latching means.

15. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprisinga table for carrying out the garment finishing and folding operations, means for'accommodating a supply of wrapping bands in position for'application to the finished and folded garments, a panel member provided with garment folding elements and. movable into and out of superposed relation to the top of the table, means for creasing the ends of said bands to spread and facilitate separating the bands between successive operations of the apparatus, and means operating simultaneously with 'the operation of said creasing means to throw said panel member back into inoperative position.

l6. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final folding and finishing operations thereon, means for presenting a supply of wrapping bands in position for application to the finished and folded garments, a garment fold board movable into and out of superposed relation to the top of the table, means operable at the will of the operator to crease and spread the ends of said bands between successive operations of the apparatus, and means actuated by the operation of said creasing means for throwing said fold-board back into its inoperative position.

1'7. Garment finishing and folding apparatus comprising a table for accommodating a garment in the final finishing and folding operations, means for accommodating a supply of wrapping bands ready for application to' the finished and folded garment, creasing members movable into and out of operative position to engage the end portions of the bands, means operable at the will of the operator to actuate said creasing members into engagement with the bands and thereafter produce sliding movement of the members while in said operative engagement for spreading said end portions between successive operations of the apparatus, and a counter device having a plunger element in position for engagement by one of said creasing members and actuated by the sliding movement; thereof to register successive operations of the apparatus.

JAMES W. STEELE. 

